BWW Review: L'ITALIANA IN ALGERI at Sarasota Opera House

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Mar 31, 2017927

The opera, L'italiana in Algeri, (The Italian Girl in Algiers), by Gioachino Rossini, (The Barber of Seville, William Tell, Ivanhoé), bears an avant-garde theme contemporary to the struggle women are still facing today - some sense of equality. The opera buffa, (comic opera), written in 1813, when Rossini was 21 years old, was reportedly completed in just 3 weeks. Rossini's forward thinking and sense of comedy make this plot twisting composition one of the most fun you will encounter in the world of opera.

As the curtain rises we get the immediate feeling that male masculinity is the theme of this testosterone-driven plot. The phallic symbolism overshadowing the stage architecture is no mistake. Kudos to scenic designer, Michael Schweikardt, for setting the tone.